Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner’s split this summer was one of the top stories of the year. It also revealed the incredible extent that these two, or perhaps the studio heavily banking on Affleck’s success as Batman, would go to control their public image. So here we have a brief article on E! Online informing us about Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner’s holiday plans. E! has an exclusive at least, this isn’t on every other site with slightly different source wording like all the other articles following the Garner-Affleck split of 2015.
Affleck and Garner, who announced their split over the summer, will be spending Christmas together with their children, a source tells E! News. “They will be together as a family,” the insider explains. “They continue to put the kids first and spend time with each other for the sake of their children.”
Even though they’re not together romantically anymore, the insider explains that they’re “in a good place right now.” The former couple won’t be spending the holidays in Los Angeles, though. Instead, another source tells us that they’ll be packing their bags and heading to snowy Montana, the perfect weather for a white Christmas.
The former couple is parents to Violet Affleck, 10, and Seraphina Affleck, 6, as well as son Samuel Affleck, 3, and are planning on spending the holidays all together with both sides of the family as one unit because they fully believe that family comes first…
Fortunately, these two have become the image for friendly exes and seem to have made it work, but even the friendliest of exes will still have their struggles. “There are still a lot of issues, but she has put them aside for the sake of her family,” added the source. “Jen’s number one priority is the kids and always has been…When they [she and Ben] spend time together, it is for the kids.”
Affleck and Garner have not yet filed for divorce and this article is in keeping with the countless other pieces informing us how well they’ve been getting along post split. I jest, but this is nice for their kids. As long as they’re able to recognize their dad, it should be a great holiday.
Before Ben Affleck was known as the dude who slept with the nanny, he was so concerned about his public image that he asked the PBS show, “Finding Your Roots,” to censor the fact that one of his ancestors owned slaves. This news came out with the Sony Hack, we found out because Finding Your Roots host, Dr. Henry Louis Gates, asked Sony head Michael Lynton, about it. This of course led to an internal investigation as to whether FYR was up to PBS’s exacting journalistic standards. PBS suspended production of the show after finding that standards were violated and stopped airing the episode featuring Affleck.
“Finding Your Roots” is finally returning for a third season, and host Gates told The NY Post that he’s over Ben Affleck’s big controversy. He said “What happened with Ben, I have learned from it. I am over that controversy — that ship has sailed — it was a learning experience, and the show is bigger and better now.” This makes me wonder how much Gates was privately shaking his head when Affleck’s nanny scandal came out about a month after FYR got suspended by PBS.
Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner are shown out with their kids in mid November. Photos of Affleck and Garner separately are from 12-2 (Affleck), and 12-16 (Garner and son). Credit: FameFlynet and WENN.com
So did anything change in their dynamic when they announced they are getting divorced? Still going to the farmers market, still going on family vacations, still carpooling to pick up the kids and no filing in 6 months.
Be serious people, spending christmas together isnt just a pr move. Sure Ben is obsessive about his image but still, this isnt just pr. I think they are emotionally co-dependent and its just incredibly hard for either to cut the strings just yet. I know that flys against the long standing narrative here that “Ben cant stand to be around Jen” but there you have it. Healthy or unhealthy, these two are bound to each other.
I have no idea if they are emotionally co-dependent but I sort of think if he had a jump off they might not be spending the holidays together. He’s conveniently unattached, making it easier to spend time with the kids.
We completely disagree in that case. I’m pretty sure that he has plenty of jump offs presently. No way Ben Affleck is going sexless for six months, come on. He could even spend christmas with his mum and take the kids for Boxing Day. Hell, he could spend the day getting his butt kissed at some casino. But instead he is “running home” to Jen at Christmas. Thats his “true North”. This is why the guy who everyone said was sick of his wife still hasnt made the final leap six months later.
With all he’s put her through for years & she didn’t leave, I’d agree Jen was co-dependent on him, and that’s hard to change, even after a split. I don’t think Ben is co-dependent on her, nor emotionally invested in any of his relationships – he has the same vacant, uninterested, detached look with every woman he’s been with.
I think Ben is only ever emotionally invested in himself. He might care about his kids, but given the lack of respect he has shown to women in general and his marriage/family, it’s hard to see him truly caring for anyone but himself. He is only bound to Jen & the kids because it reflects well on him.
“Be serious people, spending christmas together isnt just a pr move.”
I agree, but for different reasons. I think when people have young kids, Christmas is FOR the children. Many divorced couples have shared Christmas experiences when the kids are still little, because they want their kids to have warm memories.
Yes, I think the key point is that the kids are still so little and still adjusting to the new normal. I seriously doubt these two would have any interest in spending Christmas together otherwise. The cynic in me does think Ben does not wish to be labeled “bad father” in addition to everything else though.
Artificial youth does not look good. Ben looks very scary in this picture. I prefer the bearded Ben of the summer.
Also, I can only imagining how hard Henry Louis Gates shook his head. This man-child would prefer being a perverted cliche than acknowledging that a long, long time ago, someone in his family – who isn’t him – owned slaves. You can’t come from a slave owning family, but you can screw your children’s caretake underneath your wife’s nose? He’s such a loser.
She dresses so frumpy. I can’t wait for her to dump ben and get some color back into her life.
I think she’s looking cuter these days. Fresh and young and happy.
She doesn’t seem very appealing other than being a mom, which she is obviously good at. She still is an incredible frump. She seems to adore her grey sweat tops along with her wrinkled and baggy grey sweaters. Her hair is another story. 3 kids? You still have time to spend two minutes on yourself. Cuter these days? I don’t see it.
I don’t doubt that she spends more time on herself if she’s going out to lunch or a business meeting or anything but being out with her kids. Maybe because I’m the same, I don’t see a need to get dolled up when I’m only picking my kids up from school.
I think it is nice to spend the holiday together; but I still think it is confusing to the kids. Even if you tell them that Mommy/Daddy are not together.
I wonder too why they haven’t filed for divorce; and once they do will the dynamic change. What happens when the other one gets into a relationship. I’m reminded of the Bruce/Demi/Ashton togetherness years. All of that ended after Bruce go married and Demi/Ashton divorced. I don’t know if Bruce has a relationship with Demi now.
Children that young still may want their parents together. I truly hope this all works out. Especially for the kids.
I don’t see how this is best for the kids. My husband I divorced this fall and I know that my kids are hoping we will reconcile. I have to gently but firmly explain that we will never get remarried. Being cordial to each other is one thing. Spending Christmas together would just confuse them and raise their hopes unnecessarily.
When my cousin divorced her alcoholic husband years ago, he still came over for Christmas morning, Thanksgiving, the kids birthdays, etc. They did NOT vacation together, but for the important things, she always included him. When the kids were younger, she wouldn’t even let them come downstairs until their father got to the house.
That said, neither of them ever remarried. I think that would have complicated the situation. He passed away 2 years ago (addiction is a terrible thing –>> even after the doctors told him if he didn’t stop drinking, he would die, he kept on until it killed him), all of the children are grown now and she is engaged to a wonderful man.
Her oldest daughter pulled her aside one Christmas and said, “Thank you for including Daddy in everything. Even though I know you will never get back together, you still make us feel like a family.”
“I wonder too why they haven’t filed for divorce”
There are a lot of assets to work through. It takes so many work hours for a team of forensic accountants to go through all of their property, their pensions, their long term residuals and income from producing/directing/acting/writing/etc.. They have to figure their value when putting the divorce package together. So much work has to be done before the papers are filed and finalized.
I thought the point of divorce was because staying together for the kids is not fair to the kids???
Hollywood – divorce is only so you can bang 20-somethings without looking bad in the press. Kids must still have forced holidays with parents avoiding and/or bickering and/or being passive aggressive with each other.
I think they’ll file after the holidays and it’ll be a quick divorce not for the kids’ sake but because it needs to be over and done with by the time BvS promo tour starts.
I don’t think they’re staying together. The outings together are extremely rare now. The last one was only because of Violet’s 10th bday. The farmer’s market outings have pretty much stopped as a couple and he hasn’t been seen going to church with them in months either. I think the studios are pushing for “calm/no drama/play nice” leading up to the Batman release. The xmas stories also have quotes from Jen about how she no longer cares what he does and who he does it with – she’s content with the split and is just doing what’s best for the kids (not sure I really believe this about her, but…)
I do think it’s pretty funny how the stories are being sure to highlight that they will “sleep in separate bedrooms.” This is apparently a key message that one or both of their camps want to be sure to convey to the public.
He is filming his next movie at Boston
Yes, true – he was in Boston. But he’s been back in LA filming that same movie now for the last few weeks – since after Thanksgiving. And there still haven’t been any farmers markets or church outings, etc.
I am glad that I have not been, and hopefully will never be, in this type of relationship or sort of situation. I’d rather be alone or be a single parent than deal with endless drama and heartache. Regardless of how these two started, this has become a one-sided sham marriage if there ever was one. I have always believed that Garner has been the one to try and make this marriage work for years and Ben has just been riding along for the perks of having someone to pop out his kids, escort him to awards ceremonies, and prop up the fake image of his being a devoted husband and father. That all unraveled this year, yet, Garner is still trying to make it work. Of course, part of that is for the kids, but part of her not filing for divorce is because she has become addicted to upholding the sham marriage she has created. Even though their split was one of the biggest stories of 2015, people will get tired of this game very quickly. No one is going to care if they are still married or divorced when Batman is released.
+1
Ben looks horrible. too much botox and dyed hair…he looks like he has a forced smile..he doesn’t want to be there…
Dear Ben, whatever you’re doing to your face please stop. You look like a marshmallow in a toupee. His face has no character or bone structure. A no no for effing BATMAN.
Also, their whole relationship saddens me. I particularly feel for Garner. Back in the day if it wasn’t right, she’d drop em like a hot potato and move on to the next. Ask Scott Foley or Michael Vartan from Alias. Now, she’s probably talked herself into some traditional homespun Virgina born and bred ‘mom of 3,’ role – and thinks she has to make whatever this is work because all her kids are with Ben and maybe she doesnt see anyone willing to take a 42 yr old with 3 affleck kids on…so she feels trapped into accepting affleck’s crumbs. Ugh.
I mean i hope this isnt her outlook…there’s someone out there for everyone, including divorced Hollywood moms of three. Look at Gwen and Blake! Live girl, make ol pufferfish pine for you.
Cringeeeeeeeee at all the work Ben’s had done on his face.
YAK at this Christmas with the fam thing, although I understand how it is a good thing for the kids.
Double YAK at Jen’s wardrobe choices as usual. Happy New Year, Girl—hire a damn Stylist
=0
I think the announcement of their holiday plans was just plain strange. They did not need to mention the sleeping arrangements either. Maybe that was meant as a message to their significant others?
I seriously LOL at commenters on a gossip site saying she looks frumpy. What are you currently wearing?! I can’t help it, I like Jen. She reminds me of myself. She dresses ok enough to exit the home to run errands but she has 3 kids and thus, there is always something more important to do than style an adorable outfit or do meticulous hair and makeup. The mom is rather have as a kid would be the one who is more fun than glamorous. Cares more about play dates and baking cookies than about spoiling kids with iPads so she can spend hours on her looks.
I am glad none of you can see what I’m wearing now, much less how my hair looks. I totally get your point, Ifusayso. That being said I confess to being critical more than once on this site about Garner’s appearance. I think it’s due to the fact I have always thought of her as fit & gorgeous and needing very little to look that way, yet she seems to pick the least flattering clothing and shoes ever. I can’t even say she’s dressing for comfort because even the fabric looks itchy.
I blame Affleck.
I’m not a Jennifer Garner fan but I think she looks fine. Fashion is not her forte and that’s okay-nothing wrong with that. The sweater and jeans in the top pic are things I would wear. Basic but up to date.
I normally don’t comment on these two because they are so pathetic. No one cares if they break up or not, they are so obsessed with their public image.
She’s not going to let him go hes her gravy train and he’s is so self absorbed yet miserable but won’t just end it because he is so controlling over how he is perceived.
Let it go move on.
spot on
+100
Ben looks like a wax figure at Madam Tussauds.
Every move they make is carefully planned by PR.
I think it’s awesome they are spending Christmas as a family. Small children much prefer that to half a day at Mom’s and half a day at Dad’s. They get the family unit. They shouldn’t explain anything to the public or care what anyone else thinks about it.
I wish all these celebrities would stay the hell out of Montana. No one wants them here and they are a pain in the ass. I hear South Dakota is nice this time of year!
Don’t worry, they’ll all be on their Carribean/Hawaiian vacays after Christmas, but they really should consider Christmas in South Dakota or why not Fargo????
Ah-well… It’s cold, Margie!
“That ship has sailed.”
And it’s full of slaves.
Stuck in Montana with Jen and the kids? Ben is going to get SO drunk this week.
Has anyone ever seen MallRats with Affleck? To me, that is who he truly is — there was no acting involved in that part, it was all him el natural.
Is it just me or does Jennifer Garner always sport a fake smile the moment a pap meets her periphery?
I noticed this only after the divorce/nannygate. She wants the narrative to be that she’s moved on and is happy. It all about the PR.
I think that it’s good for her to show herself as moved on and happy. It’s better than walking around looking like a victim. She is setting a good example for other women who have been cheated on for rising about and being ok–not angry, bitter or pitiful. She appears to have a lot of influence by way of her popularity. Good for her for this calm and positive demeanor, when I bet the inside is anything but.
You can’t control what happens to you, but you can control how you react, especially when so many are watching you. Just my thoughts.
she s a big phony
Ya, but whether it’s genuine or not (no strong opinion or personal knowledge), it’s still a good example for those who need to see an example of moving forward.
Why does everyone always throw shade on moms – and for that matter, any woman – wearing makeup or not? Your face, your choice. Ugh.
Ben looks like Frank Whaley (Career Opportunities). That’s not a compliment.